April 19, 2017

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #RememberBeyond #CollectiveBias

For his whole life in our house (19 out of 21 months), Marleau has been the center of attention. That's about to change.

When our baby comes, Marleau will no longer be the star of the show, and it's important that we prepare him for that. He's the sweetest, most loving dog, but there are still so many things that can go wrong when combining animals and babies.

Here are some of the things we've been doing to help ease the transition:

-We're trying hard to slowly decrease the amount of attention he's given throughout the day. Among other things, that means that when he barks emphatically at us while we're doing something, we continue doing that thing and react to him in no way. Though he has other ways of demanding attention, I'd like to quell that one most of all--barking wakes up sleeping babies (and exhausted sleeping mamas).

-I've been carrying a doll around the house some to prepare him for my new look, and though I haven't tried it yet, I've been told that if you intend to go on walks with both baby and pooch, pushing an empty stroller with the dog in tow is good practice. I do wonder what my neighbors would think about that...

-We let him smell lots of the baby things we purchase or receive, and intend to let him smell her actual clothes before we introduce the two of them. Baby lotion and baby powder are two new smells he'll be smelling nonstop soon!

-We're making plans to have Marleau taken care of while we're at the hospital and for a few days after we come home. I think it's important that we get comfortable with life with a baby before bringing a potential definite disruption into the mix!
-Though Marleau isn't allowed upstairs, which is where the nursery is located, we've installed a stronger gate to keep him on the ground floor.
-Rules are important and we're doing our best to make sure they're followed! That means no more couch, even though he loves it and looks darn cute on it.

Though Marleau will be taking a backseat to this baby girl, he's still an important part of the family and we'll still treat him as such! He gets the finest dog food and plenty of treats, and we're lucky that Kroger can provide both.

Marleau's current favorite food is the Salmon, Egg, and Pumpkin variety of Purina Beyond, and we love those products too because they're made of real meat, poultry, or fish as the #1 ingredient, contain no corn, wheat, soy, or poultry by-product meal, and include no added artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives.

These claims are backed by pet nutritionists, so I'm confident that I'm doing good things for Marleau by feeding Purina Beyond to him. Good news for dog owners: Shoppers will be able to grab an exclusive digital coupon for $3 off any Purina Beyond dry dog food online at Kroger until 6/29/17. (Marleau and baby girl should be well-acquainted by then, knock on wood!)

I remember how our cats reacted when our oldest was born. They would creep over to the bassinet, rise on their hind legs and peer carefully in. It was like, "I know there's something really important in there..."

He's such a cutie, that sweet face can do no wrong :) I bet Marleau will be a great "big brother" and that he and your little girl will be getting into trouble together in no time. So smart preparing him for her arrival and with salmon, egg and pumpkin that dog food sounds like quite the healthy feast!

I took my dog to obedience training, a six week course. If dogs in the class barked, they were squirted in the face with water from a spray bottle. After a few times, there were no more barkings going on. Try it. This looks like a VERY smart dog and your ideas about preparation for baby sound really great to me. I've been through it with a German Shepherd. She took it in stride and immediately thought the baby was as much hers as mine. What a surprise. Happy days to come. Best wishes, Kathie in Odessa, WA

@Prairie Stitcher: Thank you for your comment! We will DEFINITELY try the spray bottle tactic, as Marleau is indeed a smart dog and should be able to learn such a basic rule! I appreciate your encouragement. :)